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The 2023 All-Star Weekend kicks off in Salt Lake City, Utah, and unfortunately, basketball fans will not see Steph Curry in action. The Golden State Warriors superstar injured his lower left leg earlier this month and is expected to miss multiple weeks.
He was voted an All-Star starter this season, for the ninth time in his career. However, he will not lace up for the glamorous weekend and a Western guard reserve will take his spot in the starting lineup.
This is the first time Steph Curry will miss an All-Star game after making the lineup. He received the most fan votes among the guards in the league and would have probably been named Team Captain if LeBron James wasn't in the West. Curry was the All-Star captain in 2018 when James played in the East in Cleveland.
Curry has been a starter all his life. He made the All-Star game every year since 2013 before missing out in 2020 with a hand injury.
Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies will now be a starter in the 2023 NBA All-Star game as a replacement for Steph Curry. Last year, he started alongside Curry with Luka Doncic coming off the bench. Doncic is the other backcourt starter this season from the West.
Fans will miss Steph Curry in the All-Star game
Ja Morant is certainly box office and will give spectators a treat, but most fans are upset over Curry's absence from the All-Star game. The baby-faced assassin is arguably the most exciting player in the game today. His shooting proficiency drops jaws and even his haters turn to fans when he is launching shots from 30+ feet.
Curry is the reigning All-Star game MVP. He won the award last season after dropping a 50-piece with an absurd 16 3-pointers, simply shattering the previous record for most threes in an All-Star game (nine).
Curry made two "look-away" 3s out of his 16, displaying extreme confidence even while sharing a court with other all-time greats. He combined for 475 feet worth of shots in that one game, hitting from beyond 35 feet multiple times.
Ja Morant is a worthy All-Star starter but he is no Curry. He tallied six points last season as a starter after 17 minutes of play. Will he take his showmanship to the All-Star game this year?
Guess the Lakers players!
